Stories such as Hansel and Gretel are really exaggerated and fantastical representations of what was occurring in real life during this time period. Times were incredibly dire and many families were suffering through severe economic hardships. I am sure, just like in the story, many families had a difficult time not only accessing food but divvying up reasonable shares for each member. So, any pitch for a movie that shows the world that produced Hansel and Gretel would require the main characters to be suffering through a similar situation. Setting, costuming, and other aspects of the mise-en-scene would be required to explain the perilous hardships befalling on the family. Every effort would be taken to create an atmosphere of despair that is present in the family in the story.
The characters themselves would need to be young children. To fully translate the differences between the desires of the adolescent and the mind of the adult, the actors would need to be young or middle-aged. The young actors would naturally be able to convey the innocence and curiosity present in the characters. The supporting actors, namely for the parents, should be middle-aged to represent wisdom that can be only attained through experience. And the witch, for comedic effect, because even drama needs some comedy, should be very old. Such a translation of this story onto film will help convey the purpose of teaching morals and maturity to children – at least according to Bettelheim.
The constant struggle to survive during times of such hardship would be the best backdrop for a possible Hansel and Gretel film. A strong portion of the beginning of the film should be devoted to the daily grind and difficulties the family has to go through. This can range from the parents finding it difficult to purchase and accumulate food to showing incredibly small portions of meals on the family members’ plates. Furthermore, the stepmother’s traditional position as a terrible and atrocious member of the human race should be pursued. It would create an interesting and tense dynamic within the family as they both try to feed each other, and in the stepmother’s case, rip it apart.
Sahil Patel
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I like your in depth descriptions of movie scenes. My favorite is the idea of showing the family's difficulties in the beginning of the movie. I think it would set the stage well for the rest of the film.
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